SCRIPTURE: Jeremiah 29

SCRIPTURE: Colossians 1, 1 Corinthians 1

REFLECTION/DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

1. When did you first hear the Gospel?

2. How would you define the Gospel?

3. On Sunday, Kenny said that we need to ‘put the news back in the Good News.’ What do you think he meant by this? In what way is the Gospel “news”? About what/whom?

4. How is the Story of Jesus built on the Story of the Bible/Israel?

5. In your own words, how does Jesus accomplish God’s Plan of Salvation?

6. What do you think Kenny meant when he said that we also need to ‘change our perspective’ so we can see ‘how we fit into God’s story instead of how God fits into ours’?

7. What is convicting to you about the message/topic this week? How can you grow from here?

SCRIPTURE: Matthew 28:18-20, 2 Thessalonians 3:13

REFLECTION/DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

1. The central question this week was “is following Jesus making an obvious difference in your life”? Take some time to reflect on that question and talk it through together.

2. What would an “obvious difference” be? What kinds of things about the kind of life Jesus lived would stand out in our world today?

3. Kenny said on Sunday that there are at least 3 reasons why it might be hard to answer this question: 

   1. We’ve grown tired. For those who have been Jesus followers for a long time, it can be hard to see or remember much of a “difference” in our lives. But we need to remember that God is still working in us! How can we stay focused on allowing God to continue to transform us in obvious ways?

   2. We’ve stalled out. For some of us, the curiosity and interest which drew us to begin exploring Christianity in the first place can fade before we really make a genuine decision to become a Jesus follower. This leaves us with a general sense of Christian morality in our lives...but without a real relationship with Jesus. What might change if we were to take that next step? What fears might be keeping us from this?

   3. We are afraid. For others of us, shame or embarrassment about who we were before we became Jesus followers--and even shame and embarrassment about ways we still struggle!--keep us from being honest with ourselves or with others about our journey. This makes it really hard to see a “difference” in our lives. If we are more honest about our story, what do you think God might be able to do with that honesty? How might being more vulnerable lead to growth in your life...and maybe even in the lives of others?

4. How does all of this connect to our responsibility, as Christians, to “share the good news” about Jesus? What are some questions you have for the sermon series ahead?

SCRIPTURE: Matthew 14-17

In these chapters, we could be forgiven for feeling deja vu: many of the sayings and miracles of Jesus appear to be repeated, often in the very next chapter! So, what’s going on here? The answer lies in the text’s geography: Jesus is moving here between Jewish and Gentile cultural centers…and performing identical miracles for both. This is a compelling part of Jesus’s claim to be the messiah: in Jesus’s Kingdom, God has come to deliver everyone…even Israel’s enemies.

REFLECTION/DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

1. In Matthew 14:13, Jesus is described as having compassion for the large crowd, and healing their sick. What does that say about Jesus' character considering He had just heard about John's execution?

2. Throughout Matthew 14-15, Jesus heals many of the sick. If you are dealing with health problems, what comfort does this give you? Or, does it upset you that God hasn’t done the same miraculous work for you?

3. Read Matthew 17:1-8. What is this transfiguration of Jesus about?

4. In Matthew 17:22-23, Jesus predicts His death and resurrection. The disciples are described as being “greatly distressed” upon hearing this. Why do you think that was?

5. On Sunday, Kenny asked an important question: as you read the story of Jesus’s ministry in Matthew’s gospel, what most compels you to believe (if you believe) that Jesus is who he says he is?

SCRIPTURE: Matthew 13

REFLECTION/DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

1. This week, we talked about Jesus’s use of parables. The big idea was that God wants to be understood. Can you recall a time when you learned something in this way? What do you think about this as a strategy for learning?

2. There were 3 takeaways from the parables in chapter 13 on Sunday. The first was that God speaks in the language of our experiences. Is there anything you have been learning in this season? What might your day-to-day life right now be teaching you about God/your faith?

3. The second takeaway was that God is patient as we mature (the parables of the net, weeds). Where are you hoping to see maturity in your life/faith over the next few months? How are you hoping to grow?

4. The third takeaway was that our job is to respond to what we discover (the parables of the treasure, pearl). Where are feeling a need to “respond”...but finding it difficult to do so? 

5. What do you think the parables of the treasure/pearl are about? On Sunday, I talked about “hibernation” in the church as something I’m really worried about--have you sensed/felt this? How can we keep from “forgetting” the treasure(s) we have found in our relationships with God/the church?

SCRIPTURE: Matthew 11-12

As Jesus resumes his ministry following the Sermon on the Mount, he begins to encounter doubt from all sides: certainly, the Pharisees and religious leaders continue to question whether he is “of God” or “of Beelzebub,” and even the people of his hometown express uncertainty about whether or not Jesus is the Messiah. But the real challenge, it seems, comes from Jesus’s own cousin and the man who baptized him: John the Baptist. As the author of Matthew explores these questions about who Jesus is, we see, time and again, that the proof of Jesus’s identity can be found in the radical kingdom values he embodies and enacts. Our hope this week is that we can learn how to follow in Jesus’s footsteps by being similarly “good news” to others. 

REFLECTION/DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

1. When have you doubted who Jesus is and what he is capable of?

2. What are your experiences--either good or bad--with “purity culture”? 

3. In the message, Kenny said that the Kingdom of Heaven is marked by a culture of “how we live” instead of “what we avoid.” Does this resonate with you? How so?

4. What does it say about Jesus that proof of His arrival is the healing of the disabled, and the poor receiving good news?

5. Mathew 11:28-30 quotes Jesus saying,”my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”  Does it seem easy to have faith in Jesus?  What could he be saying here?

6. If spending more of our time learning from Jesus about how to live, resulted in a better life, why aren’t we spending more time learning from Jesus?

7. What are some ways you can “live out” the hope we have in Jesus this week?